Tuesday, 24 February 2009

Jenkins can't break 4.5 - will his stock drop?

I wrote earlier that Malcolm Jenkins (CB, Ohio State) needed to run a good 40 yard dash this morning to eliminate fears about his recovery speed. He clocked times of 4.52 and 4.58 which all but confirms the worries critics had about Jenkins' ability to play corner back. The game tape showed speed would be an issue and with these times at the combine, teams might start to consider him a safety prospect instead of a corner back.

What does this do for his stock? It could affect him greatly. Teams won't invest a big contract into a corner back who won't stay with the fastest receivers. They also won't spend a lot on a project who needs to switch position. Jenkins' skill set transfers nicely to safety but he needs to add bulk and get stronger. He hasn't got the 'sledgehammer' hit in his arsenal and was often seen struggling to complete tackles, hanging onto the ball carrier but not finishing the play.

"The damage has been done." - Mike Mayock

With the Seahawks looking for an impact player, I would be surprised if they now consider Jenkins with the fourth overall pick. They'd be better served looking at the prospects who played safety in college and could find value in the 2nd or 3rd round if they want to go in that direction.

7 comments:

Anonymous
said...

I would be very interested in knowing how Crabtree's visit with Seahawks management went. I agree the new injury and him measuring shorter than 6'3" are concerns, but the 'experts' like Mel Kiper, etc, still say he's by far the best receiver out there and that the injury is not a huge deal.So my two questions: how did that meeting with Seahawks management and Crabtree go? Is he still the frontrunner to be our pick at #4?Thanks much- great Web site for us diehard Seahawk fans!

Like you I'm really intrigued to find out how Saturday's meeting went. The height issue isn't all that much (Jim Mora admitted as much himself). The injury isn't serious and it appears he'll have surgery now and not run at his pro day (wise choice).

But as you say what will put Crabtree at the top of Seattle's board or possibly move him down is the 'off the field' character of the guy. I've got mixed feelings on Crabtree. He doesn't have any red flags in terms of incidents on or off the field. He seems fairly grounded. But he isn't a big personality, he isn't a 'leader'. Some of his interviews this week have been nothing more than a few grunts and mumbles at the camera. At other times, he's come accross polite and open - you simply have to hope that in front of team's he's been the latter.

I really think that Crabtree just got caught in a really tough position. He comes across as a kid that likes to "do" rather than "talk" and I think he was really wanting to prove people wrong about his speed.

I was initially concerned when everything went down with him, but having time to think about it I just think he was thrust into a difficult situation. The short press conference was quite strange but then I realized that he was probably advised to hold it and set the record straight because of so much speculation in regards to the injury and what he was going to do.

On a different note, I think the Malcolm Jenkins' Case is closed. Feel bad for him because he seems like a really good guy and has a lot to offer. That said, there is little to no justification in taking a CB that has to convert to Safety at #4 especially when you consider 3 or 4 guys in round 2 that look good and provide better value.

I think you make a good point annonymous, you've probably hit the nail on the head with your suggestion Crabtree is a guy who likes to 'do' rather than 'talk'. Essentially, it's what he does on the field that matters not how he conducts a press conference after the game.

He's also a young guy who won't have had this much attention before. He didn't get great advice, in the pro's I'm sure his coaches and front office will do a better job of looking after him.

Also very accurate in your assesment of Jenkins. It's a shame for him, but I expect he'll drop out of the top 10 now.

I am pretty happy that Jenkins did not run a great 40, because I think it would be a mistake to draft Jenkins:

1. Our pass defense was mostly horrendous because of a lack of a consistent pass rush. A simple upgrade at CB will not solve our problems stopping the pass.

2. We already have high draft picks invested at the position, who performed adequately in 2007 with a better pass rush.

3. We lose the opportunity to draft a playmaker at another position where we more urgently need an upgrade (OL, DL, WR, RB).

4. Drafting a project S with the #4 pick is not a good idea given the money paid to that high a pick if we aren't even sure he can be a CB in this league.

I the hawks to draft someone who looks like they will be a superstar in this league, and I think Crabtree or possibly J. Smith are the only ones with that potential that I could see the hawks drafting.

I also am not sold on either of the top 2 QB options. Though I do tihnk one should be drafted this year, I don't want it to be at #4.

Thanks for your thoughts Mike, you raise some interesting points. I agree about the pass rush being more to blame for the defensive woes rather than poor CB play. In 2007 Seattle had a much better pass rush with a healthy Kerney, allowing Marcus Trufant to excel and Kelly Jennings to gain a fair share of praise. It's no coincidence that with Kerney out, the secondary suffered.

The team has invested too much into the CB position to visit that idea again. If Jenkins was drafted and didn't work out, do you get another corner? Eventually you have to draw a line and say 'we're going to give the guys we drafted a chance'.

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